Older and hmm....

Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter. - Mark Twain

The few [and I do mean few!] gray hairs on my head are okay. The speed at which my kids are growing up is also okay, although slightly less easy to accept. When my dad's case manager from the hospital mentioned that age delineation, 70, that was surreal.

It is reasonable to know that I am growing older. Having to go to back-to-school night, hearing friends grapple with the realities of being middle-aged and understanding that the age 40 was three years around the corner - those nuances of 'maturity' took a little bit of time but could be dealt with. But hearing someone else tell me that my father was 70 - isn't that really old? - that took a lot of time to sink in. All of a sudden, my parents, who never seemed to age, are getting old too. Too fast and too real.

This newly visited perspective makes me appreciate those that have been 'sent' so much more. Our friends who have left warm and comfortable homes; familiar houses and cultures that they are used to; and good, intimate friends and communities - they left something else even bigger that I never really took into consideration. They left aging parents.

Many of you are young [at least younger than I] and fearless, the world is your heartache, and you know that we are in our most desperate hour. When you leave home to save the world, remember: your parents are aging too; fly home when you can; and call your mother often.